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Loading... Die Broke: A Radical Four-Part Financial Plan (original 1998; edition 1998)by Stephen Pollan (Author)
Work InformationDie Broke: A Radical Four-Part Financial Plan by Stephen Pollan (1998)
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Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book. No current Talk conversations about this book. It's a U.S. centric book so if you're Canadian you might find a lot of this book is pretty irrelevant. i.e. Canadians can't put any faith in his assertions about gifting money, tax breaks, or even medical insurance because our system is very different from the American one. This doesn't mean the underlying idea is wrong, just the details of how to go about doing stuff really don't apply in Canada. It's also assuming a non-rural lifestyle. More than half of Canadians don't have the option to "job hop" willy nilly unless they are also willing to relocate hundreds of miles... or maybe even leave their home province. If you live in northern New Brunswick, you'll find your job-hopping opportunities are pretty limited. Also, it was written in the late 90s when the world was a different place than it is now. And a big assumption he made did come true - the housing crunch came and bankrupted a lot of people... so his suggestions that one shouldn't put all their eggs into the housing market is a bit dated. Overall, it's kinda interesting and has a different perspective on how one should manage their finances but... and it's a BIG BUT... one of his main assertions is that we should not retire because that was something that would work for only one generation (and not this one)... yeah, whatever... I'm counting down the years until retirement with great excitement. Don't take that away from me!! Better than his second book, he advises people to spend their resources while they are alive so that they get to use all of it, so that they get to direct what happens with it, so that they get to see the benefit of gifts to others, and so that children do not slack off in the anticipation of a big inheritance. It makes sense to me. However, once again, I see a fairly shallow adviser behind this. He steals Jane Bryant Quin's check-to-the-funeral-home-should-bounce line and is not knowledgeable in some of the variations in financial laws across states. no reviews | add a review
From America's most trusted financial advisor comes a comprehensive guide to a new and utterly sane financial choice. In Die Broke, you'll learn that life is a game where the loser gives his money to Uncle Sam at the end. There are four steps to the process: Quit Today No, don't tell your boss to shove it...at least not out loud. But in your head accept that from this day on you're a free agent whose number one workplace priority is your personal bottom line. Pay Cash You should be as conscious of spending as you are of saving. Credit should be a rarely used tool for those few times (buying homes and cars) when paying cash is impossible. Don't Retire Your work life should be a journey up and down hills, rather than a climb up a sheer cliff that ends with a jump into the abyss. Die Broke It sounds terrifying, the one intolerable outcome to your financial life. And yet, in truth, dying broke might be your best option for a life without fear: fear of failure and privation now, fear of impoverishment in the long run. No library descriptions found. |
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Google Books — Loading... GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)332.024Social sciences Economics Finance Miscellany And Personal Finance Personal FinanceLC ClassificationRatingAverage:
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1. Quit Today. This is probably my favorite chapter. Quitting means quitting a mentality. He strongly suggests that we think of our job as an income producing activity. It's not a place that you should expect spiritual fulfillment or to be fully respected/appreciated. We should think ourselves of free agents in the sports world jumping to whatever job increases their short or long-term pay. Thinking of jobs this way make it easier to tolerate.
2. Pay Cash. I got this one down and disagree. Using credit cards judiciously can be an asset. I have a 30 day no interest loan and usually get rebates from my credit card. Every year I get paid $100-$150 just for the convenience of using my credit card.
3. Don't Retire. We got in our heads that at 65, we are supposed to stop cold turkey and retire. Who says? We are still productive and could be consultants. Part-time working maybe? Or why stop at all? There are plenty of people who once they stopped working really stopping living.
4. Die Broke. This part wasn't written for me. Not yet.
The second part listed his quick thoughts on many financial questions. I am thankful for perhaps the first unbiased opinion on our confusing insurance options (house, auto, life, term, health, earthquake, floor, disability). He is also a big proponent of lease cars versus buying.
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